NOTEworthy MUSIC of 2023

the only truth is music. — jack kerouac

i reckon without music i’d be lost, angry, lonely, frustrated, sad or curled up under a tree somewhere longing for the end to arrive. or, more likely, i’d be gathering together with my fellow two-legged’s and making some music of our own! music is life. people have all manner of opinions on what is good music and what isn’t. as for me, i know what i like and what i don’t. but i make no claims beyond that. anyone who has the passion and courage and commitment to make music has my respect and that is that. and whether you make it or you love to listen to it, in the end, we’re all music lovers. what follows are the albums that moved me on this latest trip around the sun we’ve all been on. i hope you find a taste of solace, joy, peace, rebellion, happiness, liberation, or whatever medicine you need at the moment when you drop the needle on these melodies.

i’ve included the album title, artist and specially selected song. you’ve got 8 hours and 133 tunes to get you through your workday, sit quietly with yourself and reflect on the year, or hang with friends and talk story while you drink some wine and burn one down. playlist links at the end. rock on!

12 — Ryuichi Sakamoto….20220404

& The Charm — Avalon Emerson….Astrology Poisoning

A River Running To Your Heart — Fruit Bats….Waking Up In Los Angeles

Afrikaman — Nana Budjei….Ohia

After The Magic — Parannoul….Polaris

Air Not Meant for Us — Fires in the Distance….Wisdom of the Falling Leaves

Alchemy — Disclosure….Looking For Love

All Of This Will End — Indigo De Souza….Smog

Amatssou — Tinariwen….Kek Algham

Anarchist Gospel — Sunny War….Love’s Death Bed

Ask — Altun Gun….Rakiya Su Katamam

Atlas — Laurel Halo….You Burn Me

Audio Lust & Higher Love — SG Lewis….Lifetime

Austin — Post Malone….Enough Is Enough

Back On Track — Eagle Eye Cherry….I Like It

Being — Baaba Maal….Ndungu Ruumi

Beloved! Paradise! Jazz!? — McKinley Dixon….Run, Run, Run

Big Picture — Fenne Lily….Map Of Japan

Black Bayou — Robert Finley….Livin Out A Suitcase

Blackbraid II — Blackbraid….The Spirit Returns

Black Rainbows — Corrine Bailey Rae….New York Transit Queen

Blame It All On Love — Poolside….Float Away

Bless This Mess — U.S. Girls….Only Daedalus

Can’t Find The Brakes — Dirty Honey….Get A Little High

Cartwheel — Hotline TNT….Protocol

Chaos County Line — Skating Polly….Send A Priest

Chronicles of a Diamond — Black Pumas….Sauvignon

Closer Now — Earth Trax….The Great Blue Hole

Come Get Your Wife — Elle King….Out Yonder

Craterellus Tubaeformis — Skinshape….It’s Real

Cut Worms — Cut Worms….Ballad of the Texas King

Death Is Nothing To Us — Fiddlehead….Sleepyhead

Desire, I Want To Turn Into You — Caroline Polachek….Welcome to My Island

Did You Know There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd — Lana Del Ray….A&W

Dream Box — Pat Metheny….Trust Your Angels

Echoes Of Yesterday — Goodge….Heart Of The City

Electrophonic Chronic — The Arcs….Keep On Dreamin’

Endless — Marsh….Fragments

Ends & Begins — Labrinth….The Feels

Enigmatic Society — Dinner Party….The Lower East Side

Equal Strain On All Parts — Jimmy Buffett….Bubbles Up

Every Loser — Iggy Pop….Modern Day Ripoff

everything is alive — Slowdive….alife

Everything Is Going To Be OK — GoGo Penguin….Glimmerings

fabric presents — Chaos In the CBD….The Jungle

Fantasy — M83….Oceans Niagara

Fatalism — Polaris….Parasites

Follow The Cyborg — Miss Grit….Perfect Blue

Fuse — Everything But The Girl….Nothing Left To Lose

Good Riddance — Gracie Abrams….I know it won’t work

Grocery Shopping With My Mother — Kevin Powell….A Love Sonnet

Heaven Is a Junkyard — Youth Lagoon….Rabbit

Heavy Heavy — Young Fathers….Rice

Higher — Chris Stapleton….The Day I Die

Hymns From The Apocrypha — Suffocation….Delusions Of Mortality

I Am Not There Anymore — The Clientele….Garden Eye Mantra

I Killed Your Dog — L’ Rain….5 to 8 Hours a Day

In Between Thoughts, A New World — Rodrigo y Gabriela….Descending To Nowhere

In The Beginning (Vol. 3) — Declaime & Madlib….Ill Minded

I’ve Got Me — Joanna Sternberg….I’ve Got Me

Iggy — Demira….Dismas

In Between Dub — Jack Johnson….Traffic In The Sky

Killing The Messenger — David Rovics….Killing The Messenger

Kx5 — Kx5, deadmau5 & Kaskade….Alive

Ladders — The Loving Paupers….Ladder

Little Love — Elderbrook….Howl

Lover’s Game — The War and Treaty….Ain’t No Harmin’ Me

Lucky For You — Bully….Hard to Love

Madres — Sofia Kourtesis….Madres

Mammoth II — Mammoth WVH….Optimist

Melusine — Cecile McLorin Salvant….Petite musicque terrienne

Michael — Killer Mike….Run

Music For The Deck Of The Titanic — East Forest….Patience

No Destroyer — Burning Spear….The Spear

No Time To Waste — Aftermath….No Time To Waste

Oh Me Oh My — Lonnie Holley….I Am A Part Of The Wonder

Old Soul — Stephen Marley….Cool As the Breeze

Permanent Damage — Joesef….It’s Been A Little Heavy Lately

Physic Dance Routine — Scowl….Shot Down

Pieces Of Treasure — Rickie Lee Jones….Just In Time

Point Of No Return — Coco Bryce….Sugar and Spice

Praise a Lord Who Chews but Which Does Not Consume: (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds) — Yves Tumor….God Is a Circle

Prize — Rozi Plain….Conversation

Prime — Christian McBride….Moonchild

Protect Your Light — Irreversible Entanglements….Free Love

Rat Saw God — Wednesday….Chosen to Deserve

Release Spirit — Khotin….Lovely

Red Moon in Venus — Kali Uchis….Love Between

RUSH! — Maneskin….Own My Mind

Rustin’ In The Rain — Tyler Childers….Space and Time

Salvation — Gorgon City….Voodoo

Singing Into Darkness — Hataalli….Laugh Out Loud

Soft Landing — Art School Girlfriend….A Place To Lie

Someone There — Pieter Nooten….Slow Mode

Strange Disciple — Nation of Language….Weak In Your Light

Sublimation — Shalom….Happenstance

Sunrise Bang Ur Head Against Tha Wall — Nia Archives….That’s Tha Way Life Goes

Talan — Raphael Roginski….Electron

That! Feels Good! — Jessie Ware….Free Yourself

The Best Part About Being Human — Bearings….I Want To Heal

The Greater Wings — Julie Byrne….Death Is the Diamond

The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We — Mitski….Bug Like an Angel

The Land The Water The Sky — Black Belt Eagle Scout….My Blood Runs Through This Land

The Omnichord Real Book — Meshell Ndegeocello….Clear Water

the record — boygenius….Cool About It

The Show — Niall Horan….Meltdown

The Sun — Joseph….The Sun

The Weakness — Ruston Kelly….The Weakness

This Is Why — Paramore….This Is Why

This Stupid World — Yo La Tengo….Fallout

Time Ain’t Accidental — Jess Williamson….Time Ain’t Accidental

Tomorrow’s Fire — Squirrel Flower….Full Time Job

Torrential Torment — Skourge….Hallucinator

Train Song — Trevor Hall….all of my lessons

Traveling Wildfire — Don Flemons….Slow Dance With You

Trim Tab (candlelight version) — Stone Petoskey….Woke, Inc.

Uncle John’s Band — John Scofield….Stairway to the Stars

Universal Language — Simon Doty….Follow Me

V — Unknown Mortal Orchestra….That Life

villagers — Califone….the habsberg jaw

Voir Dire — Earl Sweatshirt and The Alchemist….Vin Skully

Volcano — Jungle….Back on 74

Walk Around The Moon — Dave Matthews Band….The Ocean and the Butterfly

We Buy Diabetic Test Strips — Armand Hammer….Landlines

Weathervanes — Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit….King of Oklahoma

when the quiet comes — Leaving Laurel….there is beauty when you allow yourself to see

Wide Open Light — Ben Harper….Wide Open Light

With A Hammer — Yaeji….For Granted

Work Of Art — Asake….I Believe

World Music Radio — Jon Batiste….Butterfly

Write It On The Wall — Alific….Take It Easy

You Are Who You Hang Out With — The Front Bottoms….Emotional

Zach Bryan — Zach Bryan….Tourniquet

Ziggy Stardub — Easy Dub All-Stars….Starman

playlist link: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1TlfUdoOwqejXt52d3dfJd?si=3dacdadecf8f43fe